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'The Vanishing of Ethan Carter' Picked Up By Nordic Games

Inspired by the weird fiction stories and other tales of macabre of the early 20th century, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a game to be played at night, alone, and in headphones.

In The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, you play as Paul Prospero, an occult detective who receives a disturbing letter from Ethan Carter and realizes that the boy is in grave danger. When Paul arrives in Ethan’s home of Red Creek Valley, he realizes things are even worse than he imagined. Ethan has vanished in the wake of a brutal murder, which Paul comes to see might not be the only murder to investigate. Using both regular and supernatural detective skills, Paul must figure out what happened to the missing boy.

The game is played through first-person perspective where you explore and interact with the environment in order to discover the truth. Paul has a supernatural gift that allows him to visualize the final moments of anyone who’s been murdered. The more clues you discover, the clearer and longer Paul’s vision. Exactly how much you are able to discern from a corpse is entirely up to you. You might discover the motivation of the murderer, or find a hint of where to go next – or both.

"The Vanishing of Ethan Carter immediately had the finger on our pulse," said Reinhard Pollice, Business & Product Development Director at Nordic Games. "We’re excited to be involved with this one-of-a-kind horror/mystery game and the atmosphere it conveys on screenshots and trailers already. To collaborate with The Astronauts is the icing on the cake."

"With such an understanding and responsive partner it’s been really easy for us to make a decision to cooperate with Nordic Games on the box version of our game," said Adrian Chmielarz, co-founder of The Astronauts and lead designer of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. "Some gamers asked us for a physical copy, and I am happy that thanks to Nordic we can deliver."

Every developer with a deep interest in the storytelling side of gaming uses different ways to let players live through a story: from interactive dramas like The Walking Dead to story-exploration games like Gone Home to online adventures like Journey. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is The Astronauts' own attempt to tell a multi-layered story while keeping the player completely immersed and constantly engaged-with the unique sense of presence only video games can offer.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a “weird fiction” horror, meaning our focus is on atmosphere, mood, and the essential humanity of our characters. With its mixture of a beautiful world with the haunting and macabre, this story is for adult players. That said, there is no combat in our game. If our game leaves any scars, you won’t be able to see them. Also, we want gamers to experience the story of Paul and Ethan at their own pace, and without the need for sedatives. It’s less about pure terror and more about clammy unease.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is being developed on the latest version of Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3, as well as exciting new technology, the details of which we will reveal in the coming months.